As cities look to the Internet of Things to reimagine urban infrastructure, one hope is that real-time data collection will help increase energy efficiency at the regional level. Where do homes outfitted with a network of smart devices fit in?

In many places around the country, the price of water is increasing, quickly. While the reasons for the increase vary depending on the location, common to the issue is the ability of planning to either help or hinder the problem.

In the next few decades, U.S. governments and businesses are predicted to spend trillions of dollars on infrastructure. This is the reality. The question is: how do we get smart about these investments?

Construction and permitting for large solar facilities like those located in the desert at the border of California and Nevada is nearly non-existent. Uncertainty over expiring tax credits is only partly to blame.

The millions of smart meters and grid sensors in operation across North America are providing a flood of information that utilities are still struggling to process. But changes in operations are already emerging, and potential uses grow by the day.

Through determined investment, L.A. is on track to generate a third of its power from renewables by 2020. Varun Sivaram, formerly Mayor Villaraigosa's senior advisor on energy and water policy, explains how the city must modernize its power system.

An Ohio utility is switching to coal due to the rising price of natural gas, illustrating how sensitive fuel prices are to utilities. However, when it comes to building new plants - natural gas has the advantage due to coal's higher capital costs.

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